Clothes drier basket



March 5, 1957 A. J. GIANNINI CLOTHES DRIER BASKET '2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 50, 1955 F/G. Z.

uvmvrozz. ANT/lO/VY J G/A/Y/W/VJ WWW March 5, 1957 A. J. GIANNINI 2,783,551

CLOTHES DRIER BASKET Filed Dec. 30, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. A/VTw/W 1 G/AW/W/W,

United States "Patent 2,783,551 CLOTHES DRIER BASKET Anthony J. Giannini, Philadelphia, Pa. Application December 30,1955, Serial No. 556,737

3 Claims. (Cl. 34*133) The present invention relates to a clothes drier and in particular to a basket to fit within thedrier drum.

An object of the present invention isto provide a basket for use with a clothes drier, one-which can be used to carry damp clothes'to the drier, one which can be inserted fully within the drier and removed therefrom when the clothes are dry, and one which may then be used to carry the dried clothes to a place for ironing and storage.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a basket for use with a clothes drier, one which is simple in structure, sturdy in construction, one which maybe constructed in any size so as to fitwithin a particular drier drum, and one which is economically'feas'ible.

These and other objects and advantages of thepresent invention will be fullyapparentfrom the fol-lowing description when taken in connection with the annexed drawings, in-which;

Figure 1 is-an elevationalview of the clothes dryer with oneof-the doors open and with the basket of-the present invention installedtherein,

Figure 2 is'a sectional viewtaken on the line 2-2 of Figure 1,

Figure 3 is a sectional view taken on theline 3'3 of Figure 1,

Figure 4- is a. sectional-view taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 3,

Figure 5 is a fragmentary view,. on an enlarged scale, taken on thee-line S-" -S Of'Figure 4, 7

Figure 6 is ansectionalview, on-an enlarged scale,

taken on ,the line 66 of Figure,2, a nd t Figure 7, is a sectional view?taken on the;.;line 7 ;-7

of Figure 6.

Referring in greater detail to the drawings in which like numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views, the drier basket of the present invention is for use with a clothes drier having a housing 10 and including an open front end 11 and a back end closed by a wall 12. The open front end 11 is provided with a pair of openable and closable doors 13 and 14 bridging the open end 11 of the housing 10. The clothes drier includes a rotatable horizontally-disposed perforated drum 15 which is open at one end, as at one end, as at 16 in Figure 2, and closed at the other end, as at 17 in Figure 2. The drum 15 is positioned within the housing 10 so that the open end 16 is adjacent the open front end 11 of the housing 10 and the closed end 17 is adjacent the back wall 12 of the housing 10. The clothes drier also includes a plurality of tub baffles 18 which extend along and project from the inner surface of the wall of the drum 15, the baffies 18 being here illustrated as four in number and being arranged in opposed pairs.

The clothes dryer basket of the present invention con sists in a reticulated basket indicated generally by the reference numeral 19 and having the form of a half cylinder having one end 20 open and the other end 21 closed. The half cylinder which comprises the basket 19 is insertable into the drum 15 through the open end 2,783,551 Patented M .59.

16 of the drum 15 with the closed end 21 of-the basket 19 foremost and; is withdrawable-fromfihe drum'15 with the openend' 20 0f the basket 19 foremost When the basket 19 is wholly within the drum 15, the closed end 21 of the half cylinder abuts against the closed end 17 of the drum. When the basket 19 iswholly within the drum 15, the open end 16 of the half cylinder which comprises the basket is adjacenttethc open end lo-of the drum.

Cooperating means i provided on the wall of thehalf cylinder which comprises the basket l9-and is engageable with the opposed tub bafiles 18 when the halfj'cylinder 18 when the half cylinder is wholly insertedwithin the drum for attaching 'the half cylinder in the said position in the drurn. Specifically, this means consists in a V-shaped groove extending longitudinally in the outer wall of the half cylinder and ofia-siz'e 'to receive the adjacent one'of-"the tub hafi les l 8. The basket '19 is shown in Figures lto 4'to have "three of these grooves, the latter being indicated by the reference numeral 22, althoughobviously the basket should be providedwith a suitable number oi grooves to fit over the tub baffles in the particular drum 'in which the basket is'to beinserted.

Resilient means is provided in each of -the grooves-22 and bears 'against the"adjacent portion of the tub-baffle 18 when the half cylinder which constitutes the basket 19 is wholly insertedin the drum 15for holdingjthe half cylinder in its attachedposition. Specifically,{ this resilient meansconsists in a pair of leaf-spring -23 each anchoredlby one end in eachoftheuppe'r ones of the grooves-22 and having intermediate portionsoutwardly bent so as to trictionally engage the'adjacent portion of the associated; tub b'aflle 18 wh en the basketl 9-is wholly inserted within the'drum 15; L An upstanding backing plate- 24h carried-by the closed end 21 of the half cyclelwhich comprises the basket 19 for retaining the clothes in thehalf 'cylinder when the half cylinder is wholly inserted-"within the drun'r 15. Thebacking plate 24 is perforated and is fo'r nedjntegrally with the closed end 21 of the half; cylinder. The backing plate Ztis'conf rmabIy shapedto the closed end of th edrum. 17, excepting its uppermostend which is cutaway, and f'when tlie'half-cyli nder is within the drum 15; the backing plate 24 serves to;retain' thelhalf cylinderin its position abutting: one portion of the 15'; ane dpn 'end zoof thehalf"cylinder--whicli coniprises the basket 19 has a semiannular plate 25 attached thereto and forming a means for retaining the clothes within the basket when the basket is being transported to and from the clothes drier. The upper end of the backing plate 24 is provided with an elongated slot 26 forming a handle. The semiannular plate 25 is formed, as seen best in Figures 6 and 7, with an inwardly extending recess 27 forming, with the adjacent edge of the semiannular plate 25 another handle, one on each side of the half cylinder, as seen in Figure 4.

The clothes drier also includes a motor 28 operatively connected by a belt 29 to a pulley 32 which is secured to the drum 15 for rotating the latter about a fixed shaft 31 which projects within the housing 10 from the back wall 12. A motor 28 is also operatively connected to a fan assembly 32 for forcing the heated air over the clothes within the drum 15 and out of the vent pipe 33 in the upper end of the back wall 12. The air within the housing, or admitted to the housing, is heated by conventional means (not shown). The housing 10 includes 'a bottom 34 supported upon a base 35, as seen in Fig. 2.

In use, the basket 19 may be used to carry damp clothes as received from a washing machine to the drier and may be inserted, clothes and all, into the drier drum 15 and securely held therewithin while the drier drum 15 is rotated by the motor 28 and hot air is blown through the drum 15 and through the basket 19 to dry the clothes. When the clothes are dry, the drum 15 may be rotated by hand'to a position in Whichthe basket 19 is at the bottom and then the basket 19 may be withdrawn from the drum 1S and carried, with its load of dried clothes, to a place of further processing the clothes.

It is intended, of course, that the front opening of the housing be of such size as to admit the basket 19. Also, while driers are presently constructed with downwardly-opening doors so as to form a shelf for the temporary support of the clothes to be dried, this is not necessary in a drier constructed so as to receive the basket 19, and preferably, the housing 19 should have a pair of doors 13 and 14 opening from the center. The basket 19 may also be used to serve as a hamper for the temporary storage of clothes to be washed.

What is claimed is:

1. The combination with a clothes drier including a housing having one end open and the other end closed, an openable and closable door bridging the open end of said housing, a rotatable horizontally-disposed perforated drum open atone end and closed at the other end positioned within said housing so that the open end is adjacent the open end of said housing and the closed end is adjacent the closed end of said housing, and opposed tub baflles extending along and projecting from the inner surface of the wall of said drum, of a reticulated basket in the form of a half cylinder having one end open and the other end closed, said half cylinder being insertable into said drum through the open end thereof with the closed end foremost and withdrawable from said drum through the open end thereof with the open end foremost when the door of said housing is in its open position, the closed end of said half cylinder abutting the closed end of said drum and the open end of said half cylinder adjacent the open end of said drum when the half cylinder is inserted fully within said drum, and cooperating means on the wallof said half cylinder and engageable with said opposed tub baflies of said drum when said half cylinder is wholly inserted in the drum for attaching said half cylinder into position in said a 2, The combination with a clothes drier including a housing having one end open and the other end closed, an openable and closable door bridging the open end of said housing, a rotatable horizontally-disposed perforated drum open at one end and closed at the other end positioned within said housing so that the open end is adjacent the open end of said housing and the closed end is adjacent the closed end of said housing, and opposed tub baflles extending along and projecting from the inner surface of the wall of said drum, of a reticulated basket in the form of a half cylinder having one end open and the other end closed, said half cylinder being insertable into said drum through the open end thereof with the closed end foremost and withdrawable from said drum through the open end thereof with the open end foremost when the door of said housing is in its open position, the closed end of said half cylinder abutting the closed end of said drum and the open end of said half cylinder adjacent the open end of said drum when the half cylinder is inserted wholly within said drum, cooperating means on the wall of said half cylinder and engageable with said opposed tub bafiies of said drum when said half cylinder is wholly inserted in the drum for attaching said half' cylinder into position in said drum, and resilient means on each of said cooperating means and bearing against the adjacent tub bathe when the half cylinder is wholly inserted in the drum for holding said half cylinder in its attached position.

3. The. combination with a clothes drier including a housing having one end open and the other end closed, an openable and closable door bridging the open end of said housing, a rotatable horizontally-disposed perforated drum open at one end and closed at the other end posi tioned within said housing so that the open end is ad jacent the open end of said housing and the closed end is adjacent the closed end of said housing, and opposed tub bafiies extending along and projecting from the inner surface of the wall of said drum, of a reticulated basket in the form of a half cylinder having one end open and the other end closed, said half cylinder being insertable into said drum through the open end thereof with the closed end foremost and withdrawable from said drum through the open end thereof with the open end foremost when the door of said housing is in its open position, the closed end of said half cylinder abutting the closed end of said drum and the open end of said half cylinder adjacent the open end of said drum when the half cylinder is inserted wholly Within said drum, and an upstanding backing plate carried by the closed end of said half cylinder for retaining the clothes in the half cylinder when the half cylinder is wholly inserted in the drum.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

